Before embarking upon a study of the concepts, techniques, and applications of College Algebra, it is important to warm up by practicing math concepts you’ve probably seen before. This practice will help refresh some of the topics you may not have used recently but which will be extended into new topics in this course. A good review will help make new math less challenging and will enable deeper thought about familiar ideas.

Each module in this course will begin with a review of the material you’ll need to use, and timely reminders will appear throughout the text exactly where you’ll need them. Of course, you can return to Algebra Essentials any time you need to refresh the basics. Even if your instructor doesn’t specifically assign material from the review features, it’s a good idea to make sure you are familiar with the vocabulary, concepts, and processes involved.

We’ll begin by reviewing important skills that you’ll use over and over again throughout the course: prime factorizations, fractions, and order of operations.